Long Way Down is a television series, book and DVD documenting a motorcycle journey undertaken by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman, on which they rode south through 18 countries from John o’ Groats in Scotland to Cape Agulhas in South Africa via Europe and Africa in 2007. It is a follow-up to the Long Way Round trip, when the pair rode east from London to New York via Eurasia and North America.Given the number of countries they passed through, the team anticipated delays and problems at the various borders they would need to cross, particularly in Africa. However, after their experiences on the Long Way Round journey, which included problems with Russian visas, a fine due to a missing stamp in their carnet document and border delays of up to 12 hours, a major focus of the preparation stage was planning for transit between countries.
Although the American crew members were barred from entering Libya, this was anticipated ahead of their arrival at the border. Upon arrival in Tunisia, the team had to bribe the local authorities with a few bottles of vodka to ease their passage into the country, which they assumed would be par for the course as they traveled through Africa. However, although short delays of up to a few hours were common, there were few significant problems at crossing points as they made their way further south.